Wolters Kluwer Health
may email you for journal alerts and information, but is committed
to maintaining your privacy and will not share your personal information without
your express consent. For more information, please refer to our Privacy Policy.

About the Society

Page Content

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS)The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) is the largest plastic surgery specialty organization in the world. Founded in l93l, the society is composed of board-certified plastic surgeons who perform cosmetic and reconstructive surgery. The mission of ASPS is to advance quality care to plastic surgery patients by encouraging high standards of training, ethics, physician practice and research in plastic surgery. The society advocates for patient safety, such as encouraging its members to operate in surgical facilities that have passed rigorous external review of equipment and staffing. The society works in concert with the Plastic Surgery Foundation (PSF), founded in 1948, which supports research and educational programs for plastic surgeons.

American Association of Plastic SurgeonsThe purpose of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons is to advance the science and art of plastic surgery through surgical education, research, scientific presentations, and professional interaction. The Association conducts an annual scientific program concerning topics of interest to plastic surgeons. The meeting is available to physicians who are either members or guests of the Association.

American Society of Maxillofacial SurgeonsThe mission of the American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons is to advance the science and practice of surgery of the facial region and craniofacial skeleton. The Society accomplishes its mission through excellence in education and research, and through advocacy on behalf of patients and practitioners.

Plastic Surgery Research CouncilThe Plastic Surgery Research Council represents a dedicated group of young plastic surgeons who have a strong and passionate interest in research in the field plastic surgery. The annual meeting is a forum to discuss not only completed but also incomplete research amongst enthusiastic contemporaries who are all of the same mindset that it is the research that will move our specialty ahead into the future. The PSRC has expanded from 16 original members in 1955 to over 600 in 2007. The advancement of our specialty has been fostered by the dedication of these surgical scientists in the fields of flap physiology, tissue vascularity, ischemia reperfusion, complex and fetal wound healing, scar and capsule pathophysiology, nerve regeneration, growth factors, tissue engineering, composite tissue allografts, and stem cells. We continue to pursue new fields of research and encourage all young members of the ASPS and other international plastic surgery societies to become involved.

The American Society of Reconstructive MicrosurgeryThe American Society for Reconstructive Microsurgery (ASRM) was established to promote, encourage, foster, and advance the art and science of microsurgery and complex reconstruction and to establish a forum for teaching, research and free discussion of reconstructive microsurgical methods and principles. Today the society is comprised of more than six hundred members from sixteen countries and continues to evolve and grow providing a major engine for microsurgical advancement.

The society was born from the initial desire to nurture the emerging field of digit and limb replantation. Over the past two and a half decades members of the ASRM with their tireless work and innovation have helped transform this initial desire into an entirely new area of medicine (reconstructive microsurgery). Since its inception the field of microsurgery has grown rapidly and recent developments in immunology have opened the door for composite tissue allotransplantation (CTA) and ASRM members have been principle movers in the emerging fields of hand and face transplantation. Advanced computing and robotics continue to foster the expansion of more precise and minimally invasive techniques while the potential to biologically engineer missing tissues and structures (tissue engineering) offer an exciting gateway to the future. The American Society for Reconstructive Microsurgery, proud past, bright future and a tireless commitment to advancing the art and science of microsurgery and complex reconstruction.